The invention will be described in relation to a work station control system of an automated production line known as a "transfer line" wherein the work station is one of several work stations that communicate with each other and with an orchestrater computer on an optic communication loop. The communication system is shown in co-pending patent application entitled "Distributed Logic Control System and Communication Loop".
Typical computerized work stations in an industrial transfer line use large amounts of wiring at high material and labor cost. In addition, such wiring is subject to electrical and magnetic interference in such surroundings, and suffers a high failure rate because of the number of electrical terminations. Plug-in electrical connections such as edge connectors substantialy increase the possibility of failure. Filters are used to suppress unwanted noise and potting is employed to shield the devices mechanically but none of the systems include both electrical and mechanical isolation. Conventional systems are fixed after failure has occurred. The diagnosis of the failure is a complex and time-consuming job. Repair is costly because of the need for maintenance personnel to go through antiquated diagnostic procedures. Little thought has been given to providing a construction that substantially reduces the opportunity for a maintenance or repair person to make such an error. Instead, much time and money is spent training such a person in methods of ferreting out ambiguous situations.